Vaccine-maker Serum Institute of India has bought out the Indian partner in the SCHOTT Kaisha joint venture for an undisclosed amount.
SCHOTT is a German speciality glass company and Serum Institute now becomes its new partner, as it picks up 50 per cent stake in the Indian joint venture SCHOTT Kaisha, from former co-owners Kairus Dadachanji and Shapoor Mistry.
The development will help Serum Institute tie up its back-end supplies in the wake of global demands, as the JV makes pharma packaging products, including vials, syringes, ampoules and cartridges used to package life-saving medications.
“Even the best medication can’t reach the patient without the right packaging. Securing this supply chain is of strategic importance. SCHOTT is the perfect partner for us to do this because of their expertise and global network. As a longtime customer, we use their vials, ampoules and syringes to store our vaccines, including Covishield,” said Serum CEO Adar Poonawalla in a statement.
Serum Institute chief extends financial support to students quarantined despite Covishield
Dr Frank Heinricht, CEO, SCHOTT, added: “As India has steadily established its position as a global pharmaceutical hub, we are delighted to strengthen our footprint within the Indian pharma supply chain.”
Eric L’Heureux, the new Managing Director and former longstanding head of operations with the venture, said: “We have significantly increased our production capacity in India. Over the last three years we have invested roughly ₹600 crore to set up two new plants in Umarsadi, Gujarat, and Baddi, Himachal Pradesh, and to secure uninterrupted supply in our existing facilities during the pandemic.”
Both SCHOTT and Serum are committed to invest further, and will announce concrete plans as this partnership evolves, the statement said. On the packaging end, SCHOTT has already exceeded its target to deliver vials for more than 2 billion vaccine doses through 2021. The company is providing glass vials globally to key vaccine manufacturers. The fact that SCHOTT has an integrated value chain, covering also the glass tubing the packaging is made of, further helped to secure the supply chain, it said.